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Q&A
Discussion on comfort stations and innovative solutions like the Richmond Reliever
1:15:43
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108 sec
Council Member Carr inquires about comfort stations and the efficiencies expected from new installations like the 'Richmond Reliever' (also known as the Portland Loo). Commissioner Donoghue discusses the department's efforts to innovate and reduce costs for bathroom construction in city parks.
- The Parks Department is exploring various options including modular designs, trailers, and the Portland Loo to reduce costs and construction time for comfort stations.
- A pilot program with five Portland Loo installations (one in each borough) is underway to assess their functionality and maintenance requirements.
- The Portland Loo is seen as a lower-cost option that can be deployed quickly, but its effectiveness in New York City parks still needs to be evaluated.
David M. Carr
1:15:43
That's great.
1:15:44
That's wonderful to hear.
1:15:45
My next question is about comfort stations.
1:15:48
Some colleagues have talked about the expense involved in capital programming that the Parks does in particular comfort stations.
1:15:56
You guys recently installed what we call in Staten Island the Richmond reliever, not the Portland Lou.
1:16:01
And I just love to hear about the efficiencies you think that program will bring once you're able to batch more installations together, which I think is the point of the the program.
Susan Donoghue
1:16:12
Yes.
1:16:12
Thank you, council member Carr.
1:16:14
And, you know, you you have jumped ahead on the naming for Staten Island, which we appreciate.
1:16:19
I think that the Richmond reliever or the Portland Lou is just an example of the many different aspects that we are looking at, the many different ways that we can innovate and bring down the costs and the timeline for bathroom construction in the city.
1:16:38
And so, in addition to the Richmond Reliever or the Portland loo, you know, looking at modular, looking at trailers, looking at every different available option out there to make sure that we're doing all we can to reduce both price and also time frame.
1:16:56
With the Portland Lou, there are five.
1:16:59
There's gonna be one in each borough and they are intended as a pilot.
1:17:03
We want to see how they function.
1:17:05
Know, putting anything in a New York City park, it's gonna be, it's gonna experience a whole lot of different situations.
1:17:12
We want to see really how they function, how the maintenance is, how they work, and so we'll see the We'll get them out there, see the results of this pilot, and then see how and if we want to move forward on it.
1:17:23
But there's no doubt that it's, you know, a lower cost option and something that we can get out there quickly.
David M. Carr
1:17:29
That's great.
1:17:29
Thank you, commissioner.
1:17:30
Thank you, chair.